New to PC Gaming want to build my first PC Help...

[jemcglot]

I want to make the switch from consoles to PC I would like to build a gaming PC that can run games on their Ultra/High settings with a resolution of 1080p. I would like to get as close to maintaining 60FPS on such games as Battlefield 3, Shogun Total War, Skyrim, and SWTOR. I also will be using the computer for everyday usage such as surfing the net, school work, and watching movies. I would like to keep the price to a $1,000 USD so I already know I am going to have to sacrifice on a few things until later down the road.

I do have a build in mind or at least some components please give me your opinions on what hardware to use to help me achieve my goals for this rig. Thanks in advance.

What I have found on my own so far based on reviews off of newegg and my own research, but I am a beginner with no experience in any of this hardware let alone overclocking and milking the most out of lower quality hardware to achieve the best performance.

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
MOBO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271
HDD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840
RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345
PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021
Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153
GPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102962

The GPU is where I am not sure so much about what I should get will the 7950 be able to perform to the settings I want on games like Battlefield 3 while maintaining 60fps? Or am I better off getting two lower quality GPU's that will out perform the single 5970 at close to the same price?

Total $1,131.93 USD I will also need to purchase the OS or come across it by other means, I planned on using HDMI input on my 1080p 120hz LED t.v. for now as a monitor, I will need to get a keyboard as well. However, I am not including these products as part of my budget because they are not the rig. I look forward to your input and I hope you all can help me save some money without sacrificing to much performance.

 

[samdsox]

I think you made great choices all around. If you want to save money it seems like you would have to sacrifice some quality of your build. The power supply you got allows you to crossfire two 7950s in the future ( and the mobo allows it, z68 is the best 1155 socket. Your cpu is the same one i have and i can tell you i love it. You can save on the case, i know the haf 912 is only 45 at microcenter. You can save on the gpu by getting the 6970 but the 7900 series is the newest amd gpu. If i could have aforded it thats exactly what i would have gotten. Maybe you can save some money on the ram- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231422

 

[samdsox]

for the os you can run linux OR there are *cough* not completely legal ways to get genuine windows free- i do not condone this (but i have done it b4 when toshiba screwed me over)*cough* Google is your buddy for whichever choice you make!

 

[QuietPC]

I want to make the switch from consoles to PC I would like to build a gaming PC that can run games on their Ultra/High settings with a resolution of 1080p. I would like to get as close to maintaining 60FPS on such games as Battlefield 3, Shogun Total War, Skyrim, and SWTOR. I also will be using the computer for everyday usage such as surfing the net, school work, and watching movies. I would like to keep the price to a $1,000 USD so I already know I am going to have to sacrifice on a few things until later down the road.

I do have a build in mind or at least some components please give me your opinions on what hardware to use to help me achieve my goals for this rig. Thanks in advance.

What I have found on my own so far based on reviews off of newegg and my own research, but I am a beginner with no experience in any of this hardware let alone overclocking and milking the most out of lower quality hardware to achieve the best performance.

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
MOBO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271
HDD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840
RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345
PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021
Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153
GPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102962

The GPU is where I am not sure so much about what I should get will the 7950 be able to perform to the settings I want on games like Battlefield 3 while maintaining 60fps? Or am I better off getting two lower quality GPU's that will out perform the single 5970 at close to the same price?

Total $1,131.93 USD I will also need to purchase the OS or come across it by other means, I planned on using HDMI input on my 1080p 120hz LED t.v. for now as a monitor, I will need to get a keyboard as well. However, I am not including these products as part of my budget because they are not the rig. I look forward to your input and I hope you all can help me save some money without sacrificing to much performance.

thoughts:

1) Ram: the tall heat sinks can interfere with the cpu coolers. suggest you look for normal height not the tall
2) Mobo: There is an ASRock that is Z68 and $85 that might be worth looking at
3) Hdd: Given that you will have this drive for boot and storage consider the WD Black 500gb for about the same money. It has a longer warranty and better reputation. I've had a lot of challenges with Seagate over time
4) Gpu: If you want to back off on the cost a 6900 series will do a nice job and save money. Look at the reviews here at Toms for details
5) Psu: 650 would be plenty and may save some money as well
6) Cpu: the i3 would be a bit slower and could not be OC'd but would save about $100. Since most of the games are gpu dependent going to the i3 might leave you the money to go with the 7000 series gpu